Written in the early fifties when Rattigan was at the height of his powers, The Deep Blue Sea is a powerful account of lives blighted by love - or the lack of it.

The play opens with the failed suicide of Hester Collyer, who has deserted her husband for the raffish charms of an ex-fighter pilot.

This edition includes an authoritative introduction by Dan Rebellato, biographical sketch and chronology.

The Deep Blue Sea premiered at the Duchess Theatre, London, in March 1952. It has twice been adapted for film: in 1955, starring Vivien Leigh, and in 2011, starring Rachel Weisz, Tom Hiddleston and Simon Russell Beale.